Pacific Rim: Nothing Unexpected

Rating: 5/10 (12 July 2013)

The not-too-revealing-synopsis:
In a not-too-distant future, political rivalries have given way to a unified construction and military effort to combat a shared, other-worldly threat. New technology and science produce the next generation of defenses for the Earth. These new defenses, dependent on humans, are limited by their vulnerabilities while simultaneously bolstered by their vitality.
The not-too-revealing-review:
Pacific Rim captures "big". The movie convincingly relates the big threat to humanity, the big communal response, the big industrial production, and the big adversary. This near future is even made plausible on the political, technological, and fantasy level. The movie fails, however, to escape the graphic novel origins. Where storyline development could have come through the explanation and development of the futuristic technology, it settles for unsurprising weaponry "reveals"; where it could have entertained grand science fiction questions, it throws in another action scene; where it could have showcased large-scale action choreography, it focuses in on a punch landing or head being knocked backward. It belongs in the video game movie genre with all the flaws one expects to accompany such a label: weak storyline, repetitive action scenes, and cliché characters. It does fare better than expected in a number of categories: the acting was acceptable nor and the character development was less than ruinous. It was as shiny and glossy as one expects from a big budget motion picture of this sort, but the action scenes were sluggish and clunky. It matches up with Transformers in effects but is more Godzilla (1954) in terms of action choreography. I enjoyed it while I was in the theater, but I will not think fondly of it on the outside. I do not recommend the movie, but neither would I discourage those who desire a good solid two hours of big effects and mayhem.
Acting: 6/10 Cinematography: 7/10 Character Development: 5/10 Choreography: 3/10 Storyline: 6/10 Resonance: 1/10